If the goal is to improve the economic fortunes of the least-advantaged workers and families, says economist Don Boudreaux in this short animated video, then the minimum wage is a terrible idea. On his blog, Boudreaux adds:

The minimum wage yields unfair advantages to families, such as mine, with teenagers who hail from middle- and high-income households, who are well-educated, whose parents and other relatives have social and business connections, and who have their own personal means of transportation. These advantages come at the expense – cruelly so – of minority and inner-city teens, of low-skilled immigrants, and of other workers who are poorly advantaged yet who, in most cases, need employment more than do those advantaged workers who manage to find jobs at the higher, minimum wage.

There is considerable debate in the public square these days about a number of issues that have significant economic components. Globalization, environmental protection, and aiding the poor are just a few. Decisions we make in our personal lives are influenced by our assumptions about economic realities as well. So how might mainstream economics connect with Christian values and principles?